#and so ULTIMATELY in that moment erik's probably thinking to himself

[xxplastic-cubexx]

am i stupid why do i not understand what erik means by that line

erik's lamenting the fact he left charles when he decided to leave krakoa, ultimately leaving charles to look after krakoa by himself and try to keep the nation under control alone

[urdreamydoodles]

Hi! I saw you were taking requests and wanted to see your take on everyone dealing with a reader who's a smart ass? Thought it be a funny concept about something you'll enjoy 🤍

X-Men x Reader (Part.1)

You're a smart ass (Part.1)

You have a playful and sarcastic personality that adds humor and lightness to your relationship with your partner. Your sarcasm creates both moments of laughter and occasional tension, but ultimately strengthens your relationships.

Characters: Logan Howlett, Remy LeBeau, Kurt Wagner, Scott Summers, Erik Lehnsherr, Bobby Drake, Wade Wilson, Jean Grey, Wanda Maximoff & Pietro Maximoff

I confirm it's a funny concept! Thank you for that one ♡ Hope you enjoy. — Love, Marie, your friendly marvel fangirl

Logan Howlett (Wolverine)

- Logan has always admired your wit, but when your sharp tongue turns into you being a bit of a smart-ass, it both amuses and irritates him. He raises a brow every time you make a snarky remark, half-impressed but also battling the urge to roll his eyes. “You think you’re funny, huh, darlin’?” he’d growl under his breath, though his lips twitch into a grin despite himself.

- While he’d try to keep things serious when the situation called for it, your teasing often gets the best of him. Like that time in the Danger Room when you outmaneuvered him with a smirk and a cocky quip, Logan pretended to be pissed, but you could see the pride in his eyes. “Better watch it, or I might not go easy on you next time,” he’d say with a low rumble, knowing full well that he’s too soft on you.

- There are moments when your sass pushes his patience, and he’ll let out a deep sigh, rubbing his temples in that way he does when he’s had just about enough. But instead of snapping, he pulls you close, growling something like, “You’re gonna be the death of me,” before kissing you fiercely, reminding you who’s in charge — at least until the next time you decide to test him.

- Despite all the banter, Logan wouldn’t trade your fiery spirit for anything. Deep down, he loves how sharp and quick-witted you are, even if it means dealing with your sarcasm on a daily basis. You keep him on his toes, and after everything he’s been through, your energy and humor are a breath of fresh air. Sometimes, when the two of you are alone, he’ll lean in and say, “You might be a pain in my ass, but you’re my pain in the ass,” with that gruff, affectionate tone that never fails to make your heart skip a beat.

Remy LeBeau (Gambit)

- Remy is no stranger to charm and wit, so when you sass him, he’s ready to dish it right back. He loves the playful banter between you two, and half the time, he’s probably encouraging it just to see what you’ll come up with next. “Ah, ma chérie, you t’ink you can outsmart Remy, eh?” he’d say, a devilish grin lighting up his face as he leans in closer, daring you to keep going.

- When you make a smart-ass remark, especially in front of the other X-Men, Remy can’t help but smirk proudly. He’ll throw an arm around your shoulder, pulling you close and whispering, “You gon’ get us in trouble, but I like it.” He’s never one to shy away from mischief, and with you by his side, the two of you are unstoppable when it comes to pulling off clever pranks or getting the upper hand in any situation.

- Every now and then, Remy will try to one-up you with his own smart comments, leading to playful verbal sparring matches that only deepen your connection. But even when he’s trying to get the last word in, he never minds when you come out on top. “Damn, chérie, you too good at this,” he’d laugh, eyes sparkling with admiration as he wraps you in his arms.

- On the rare occasions when your sass catches him off guard, you might notice a flicker of surprise before he recovers with that signature grin. “Ah, you keep me on my toes, mon amour,” he’d murmur, pressing a kiss to your temple. Remy loves every part of you — the wit, the sass, and the undeniable chemistry between you two. No matter what, he’s always ready for the next round of banter, knowing it only brings you closer together.

Kurt Wagner (Nightcrawler)

- Kurt is gentle and kind, so when you hit him with a sarcastic or smart-ass comment, he’s more likely to chuckle than to take offense. He’ll tilt his head, a curious smile playing on his lips as he tries to figure out if you’re serious or just teasing him. “Are you making fun of me, mein Schatz?” he’d ask, his voice full of playful curiosity.

- Despite his more serious nature at times, Kurt is never one to shy away from your banter. If anything, he enjoys your quick wit because it keeps things light between you two, especially during difficult missions or stressful situations. Whenever you throw a clever remark his way, he’d respond with a thoughtful hum, pretending to be deep in thought before adding, “You know, I think I love you even more for that.”

- Kurt has an incredibly patient demeanor, and while your sass might fluster him at first, he always handles it with grace. He might try to counter with a more philosophical or heartfelt response, which often makes you laugh even harder. “Ah, mein Liebe, you are too clever for me,” he’d say with a soft chuckle, before pulling you into a warm embrace. Even when you push his buttons, he can’t help but love you more for it.

- When the teasing gets a little too much, Kurt will lean into his affectionate side, making it impossible for you to keep up the act. He’ll teleport behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist, and whisper, “No matter how much you tease, I know your heart.” His sweet words, paired with his playful nature, always bring a sense of comfort to the banter, reminding you that, above all, you’re deeply loved.

Scott Summers (Cyclops)

- Scott is a bit more serious than the others, and your smart-ass comments tend to catch him off guard. He’s used to people following orders and being straightforward, so when you hit him with a sarcastic quip, he’s not always sure how to react at first. He’ll frown slightly, not out of anger, but out of pure confusion. “You’re kidding, right?” he’d ask, trying to gauge your tone.

- Despite his initial bewilderment, Scott can’t help but admire your sharp mind. He may act exasperated, but deep down, he appreciates that you’re not afraid to challenge him, even if it’s through sarcasm. You keep him grounded, reminding him that not everything has to be so serious all the time. “You know, you’ve got a smart mouth,” he’d say with a smirk, shaking his head in mock disapproval.

- When you sass him in front of the team, Scott tries to maintain his composure, but there’s always a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. He’ll shoot you a quick look that says, “We’ll talk about this later,” but you know he secretly loves the way you keep him on his toes. It’s a side of you that only he gets to see, and despite his stoic nature, it brings out the softer side of him.

- After a long day of leading the X-Men, Scott finds your sass refreshing. He’ll sit next to you, finally letting his guard down as you tease him about being “Mr. Perfect” all the time. “Alright, I get it,” he’d say, his voice filled with warmth and amusement. “You’re right — maybe I do need to lighten up.” And in those moments, he’d pull you close, appreciating every part of your smart-ass self.

Erik Lehnsherr (Magneto)

- Erik, always the strategist and thinker, isn’t used to someone challenging him with quick wit and sharp humor, especially not someone as close to him as you. The first time you throw a smart-ass comment his way, he pauses, his cold eyes narrowing, but there’s a glint of amusement behind the stern expression. “Careful, little one,” he’d murmur, his voice low and commanding, “you’re playing a dangerous game.”

- Despite his typically serious demeanor, Erik finds your sharp tongue intriguing. He’s surrounded by people who either fear or revere him, so your sass brings something refreshing into his life. Occasionally, when you get a bit too clever for your own good, Erik will raise an eyebrow and smirk, “You really think you’re clever, don’t you?” His tone is dangerous, but you both know there’s a playful undertone hiding beneath the menace.

- Erik’s response to your snarky comments often depends on his mood. In darker moments, he might grow irritated, his patience tested by your quips, especially if you question his decisions. “I’m not in the mood for jokes,” he’d snap, though there’s a deep affection behind his frustration. But when he’s feeling more relaxed, Erik has been known to surprise you with his own dry, sarcastic retorts. “Perhaps I should just let you lead the revolution next time,” he’d quip with a smirk, his voice thick with sarcasm, but his eyes soft with affection.

- At the end of the day, Erik admires your courage and intelligence, even if you use them to give him a hard time. There’s a sense of respect in how he handles your smart-ass attitude — after all, he’s seen too much of the world to be fazed by a little sass. In quiet moments, he’ll pull you close, whispering in your ear, “You may be impossible sometimes, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Bobby Drake (Iceman)

- Bobby loves a good joke, so when you start tossing smart-ass remarks his way, he’s all in for the banter. “Oh, is that how it’s gonna be?” he’d ask, grinning from ear to ear as he prepares to throw a sarcastic comment right back at you. With Bobby, the sass only escalates into playful teasing that often ends with the two of you laughing uncontrollably.

- He’s the kind of guy who thrives on humor, so your quick wit only strengthens your relationship. Whether it’s during training or just hanging out at the mansion, Bobby always finds a way to keep the mood light, and he loves that you can match his energy. “Wow, look at you, Miss Smart-Ass,” he’ll say after you roast him with a particularly sharp comment. “Guess I’m not the only funny one around here.”

- There are times when Bobby’s insecurities come through, especially when your teasing touches on sensitive topics like his struggles with his powers or his place in the team. In those moments, he might brush off your comment with a forced laugh, but you can tell it’s bothered him. Later, he’ll admit, “Hey, about earlier… I know you didn’t mean anything by it. I just… you know, I’ve got my stuff to deal with.”

- Despite the occasional hiccup, Bobby loves that you keep him on his toes. Your sarcasm brings a balance to his humor, creating a dynamic that keeps things fun and light-hearted even during the toughest times. After all, he’s always been the class clown, but with you by his side, he feels like he’s met his match. “You know what?” he’d say, pulling you into a playful hug. “I think we might be the funniest couple in the mansion. No one else stands a chance.”

Wade Wilson (Deadpool)

- Being with Wade means endless chaos, and your quick wit fits right in. Wade absolutely adores your sass, and from the moment you drop your first sarcastic comment, he’s all over it. “Oh, look who’s got a smart mouth! I like it, babe!” He’s practically bouncing with excitement, eyes gleaming behind his mask. Your banter becomes a regular part of your relationship, with Wade taking every opportunity to match your smart-ass remarks with ridiculous quips of his own.

- Wade’s response to your sarcasm is often over-the-top, always aiming for laughs. You’d roll your eyes at something absurd he does, and Wade, without missing a beat, would respond with, “Oh, did you roll your eyes at me? That’s it, we’re getting a divorce.” It never fails to make you chuckle, and you know that he appreciates how you can keep up with his crazy antics. He loves that you never back down, even when he’s being the most outrageous version of himself.

- However, there are moments when Wade’s insecurity creeps through, particularly when it comes to his appearance or his mental health. If your sarcasm hits a little too close to home, Wade might joke it off, but you can sense the shift in his tone. “Yeah, I mean, who wouldn’t want to be with a guy whose face looks like a melted pizza?” he’d say with a forced grin. You always reassure him, showing him that your wit comes from a place of love, and Wade, with his usual dramatics, would throw himself into your arms, “Aww, babe, you really do love me, scars and all!”

- Despite his unpredictability, Wade loves how your humor keeps him grounded. Your ability to match his energy and throw in some sarcasm helps him feel normal in the whirlwind that is his life. “You know, I think we make a pretty kick-ass duo,” Wade would say, wrapping his arms around you. “You with your snark and me with my endless charm — we’re unstoppable!” And though the world may be chaotic, your relationship with Wade is filled with love, laughter, and plenty of smart-ass remarks.

Jean Grey (Phoenix)

- Jean is known for her calm demeanor, so your sarcasm catches her off guard at first. She’s used to people being more respectful around her, especially considering her immense power, but your playful attitude draws out a side of her that she doesn’t often get to express. The first time you make a smart-ass comment, Jean raises an eyebrow, her lips twitching into a small smile. “Oh, so we’re doing this now, huh?” she’d say, her voice light with amusement.

- As your relationship develops, Jean grows to love your quick wit. It brings a sense of normalcy to her life, something she desperately needs amidst the chaos of being an X-Man. She enjoys the way your banter makes her feel human, reminding her that she’s more than just a telepathic, omega-level mutant. “You’re lucky I don’t read your mind more often,” she’d tease after you make a sarcastic remark, though you both know she’d never actually do that without your permission.

- There are moments, however, when Jean’s powers make her feel overwhelmed and vulnerable. If your sarcasm comes at the wrong time, she might take it to heart, her telepathic abilities amplifying the impact of your words. “I’m not in the mood for jokes,” she’d say softly, her eyes downcast. You’d quickly realize that she’s struggling, and after a gentle apology, Jean would nod, grateful for your understanding. “Thank you,” she’d whisper, her voice filled with affection.

- Despite the occasional tension, Jean appreciates how your sharp mind challenges her. Your smart-ass attitude keeps her grounded, helping her navigate the pressures of her powers and responsibilities. “You always know how to keep me on my toes,” she’d say with a smile, leaning into your embrace. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.” And while Jean may be one of the most powerful beings in the world, your sarcasm reminds her that she’s also just a woman, capable of love and laughter.

Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch)

- Wanda, initially reserved and quiet, is surprised by your quick wit and sarcasm. She’s not used to people being so casual with her, especially given the weight of her powers and her past. The first time you make a smart-ass remark, Wanda’s eyes widen in surprise before a small smile pulls at her lips. “Oh, so that’s how it’s going to be,” she’d say, amusement dancing in her eyes as she begins to warm up to your teasing nature.

- As your relationship deepens, Wanda grows to appreciate how your humor helps lighten the heavy burdens she carries. Your sarcastic comments often draw her out of her thoughts, bringing her back to the present. “You think you’re funny, don’t you?” she’d tease back, a smirk on her lips, her Sokovian accent slipping through as she gives you a playful nudge. She loves how you can make her laugh, even when she’s feeling down.

- However, there are moments when Wanda’s emotions become overwhelming, and your sarcasm might accidentally cut too deep. If she’s in a particularly vulnerable state, she might take your comment the wrong way, her powers flickering dangerously as her mood shifts. “I’m not in the mood for jokes,” she’d say, her tone sharp. You’d quickly reassure her, explaining that you didn’t mean it, and Wanda, ever self-aware, would soften. “I know,” she’d sigh, taking your hand, “I just… I need some time.”

- Despite the occasional misstep, Wanda loves how your quick wit keeps her grounded. Your playful banter reminds her that not everything needs to be serious, and it helps her find moments of joy in an otherwise heavy world. “You always know how to make me smile,” she’d say softly, leaning into your embrace. “Even when I try to be serious, you just… bring out the light in me.” Your smart-ass attitude becomes a source of comfort for her, a reminder that she’s not alone in the darkness.

Pietro Maximoff (Quicksilver)

- Pietro is quick in every sense of the word, so your sharp tongue and sarcastic remarks don’t catch him off guard — in fact, he thrives on it. The first time you throw a snarky comment his way, Pietro’s already grinning before you’ve even finished. “You’re fast, but I’m faster,” he’d quip, zipping around you in a blur before coming to a stop with a smug look on his face. “Think you can keep up, smart-ass?”

- Your sarcasm and quick wit become a game to him, a challenge he’s always ready to meet head-on. Pietro loves the verbal sparring, and his playful nature means that he’s constantly teasing you back. “Oh, you’re really asking for it, aren’t you?” he’d say with a grin after you make a particularly clever remark, speeding off before you can respond. It’s a back-and-forth that keeps your relationship exciting, always filled with laughter and light-hearted banter.

- However, there are times when your sarcasm touches on his insecurities — like his tendency to rush through life, or his complicated relationship with Wanda. In those rare moments, Pietro might bristle, his smile fading as he crosses his arms. “Yeah, well, not everything can be a joke,” he’d mutter, clearly hurt. You always know how to handle him though, and after a bit of reassurance, Pietro’s back to his usual self, cracking jokes and challenging you to keep up with him.

- Pietro loves how your smart-ass attitude matches his fast-paced lifestyle. Your quick comebacks keep him on his toes, and he adores how you never let him get away with being too cocky. “You might be the only person who can keep up with me,” he’d say, pulling you into a tight hug after a particularly playful argument. And while life with Pietro is always fast and chaotic, your sarcasm adds a layer of fun and connection that makes your relationship all the more special.

[thevulturesquadron]

Shaking you by the shoulders and crawling up a wall cause Magneto knows how Rogue likes her coffee

– @unfortunately-obsessed

!!! He does!!! I bet he knows a thing or two about her sweet tooth as well. All in all, that man is so well attuned to Rogue, I swear. In comics (and from what we've seen so far, I think to some extent in TAS too ) he understands her so damn well on so many levels because he always listens and pays attention. But back to that scene - I love how he knew exactly what he was doing. He waked into that house saying he doesn't want to cause drama and then he proceeds to serve drama for breakfast. He was well aware of the attraction between Rogue and Gambit and, while at that moment his relationship with Rogue was without romantic implications or expectations, he knew how moody and jealous Gambit could be. See, Magneto knew better than to complicate things but he couldn't help but poke at Gambit, give the man a shakeup to do something about Rogue instead of continuing that insecure boyish dance around her. Magneto would never get in the way of the relationship between Rogue and Gambit (and before someone raises their hand to say that he did just that in Episode 5 - I would disagree. I think Gambit did that to himself) if that is what Rogue would ultimately want. Doesn't mean he can't enjoy tormenting Gambit when possible. I have so many thoughts about that coffee scene but I'll just limit to one this time: it speaks of the difference between how Remy and Erik show their affection towards Rogue. Remy 's always on a chase for her attention. He offers things that he can think of; he is willing to offer everything regardless if she wants/needs it or not. Erik, on the other hand, doesn't need to seek her attention; he listens to who she is, to what she prefers, what she needs and his actions come across more like an answer, like an ongoing conversation between him and Rogue. Eric brings in a mature, tempered dynamic; Remy brings in a more young, boyish desire to prove himself and be seen, to be the best he can in a relationship. I also appreciate how the exchange itself is not malicious in any way; not from Magneto, not from Gambit and certainly not from Rogue (who clearly sees what is happening, stuck in the middle. Love that we got a continuation of that dynamic in the blackbird when she called both of them out). And this answer completely run away from me. But yes! Erik knows how Rogue prefers her coffee; he probably knows what kind of wine she likes best too, he knows her favorite authors, and how her handwriting looks like. He also knows the way she can look at you in the morning, the kind of look that makes a man want to be the best version of themselves and nothing less.

[velvet4510]

Possible Explanations for the Continuity Errors of X-Men: First Class and the Original Trilogy

I know some people just write off X-Men: First Class as a separate timeline from the OG trilogy, given that it was originally intended as a reboot anyway, and there are several continuity errors.

But I think it’s extremely important from a narrative perspective that they happen in the same timeline that results in the Sentinel future and the events of Days of Future Past.

It is the events of the OG trilogy that shape Logan into becoming the only person who can possibly save mutantkind, not just with his healing factor that enables him to safely time travel, but also with the growth and perspective that he’s gained, which enables him to successfully guide Charles in the past just as Charles once guided him. Plus Logan’s memories that Charles sees further indicate this is the same Logan.

DOFP is the culmination of Logan’s character arc across the series. He goes from dismissing the X-Men in the beginning to literally traveling time and space to save them. In the process, he manages to save Jean and Scott while finally letting go of Jean and intentionally telling young Charles to recruit Scott as well, ensuring that Jean and Scott will still be together and giving up on trying to have her for himself.

DOFP is also the culmination of Charles and Erik’s arcs as they seek a second chance at the life they could’ve had together, finally seeing how their rivalry throughout the OG trilogy was never worth it, and trying to, as Erik says, have a precious few of those lost years back. (And if you don’t see how unbelievably romantic that is, well, you have no media literacy. But I digress.)

Furthermore, DOFP closes the arcs of the younger team members, like Rogue, Iceman, and Kitty Pryde, all of whom start off new and inexperienced when we first meet them in the OG trilogy, and ultimately play crucial and indispensable roles in saving the world. (Big reason why the Rogue Cut is the superior version.)

So, with all that significance established, how can we smooth over the bumps in continuity between FC and the OG trilogy? Well, let’s take them one at a time.

Charles and Raven’s relationship. It’s totally understandable that Charles never mentions Raven is his sister in the OG trilogy. Raven abandoned him on the beach and showed no interest in reconciling with him, especially after the experiments done on her when she killed Trask - it seems that the trauma of that experience broke her and turned her into the colder and more ruthless Mystique of the trilogy. There’s no point in bringing up their past together when it’s not relevant to any of the main events. Plus it probably pains Charles to remember Raven in that way, considering that she left him and has made no effort to get back in touch with him. They haven’t truly been siblings for 40 years by then. Also, in what scene could he have mentioned it, anyway? The two of them never directly interact in the OG trilogy, and the only time Mystique is discussed in front of Charles is when Hank reveals she’s been apprehended, and even then you can briefly see a moment of tension in Charles’ face before the subject is changed. So it is hinted at, even if it wasn’t intended at the time the OG films were made. (This also explains why Hank has little reaction to seeing Mystique in The Last Stand; they broke up when she left the beach 40 years ago, and so they’ve both moved on.)

The creator of Cerebro. The OG trilogy establishes Charles and Erik built Cerebro, whereas FC shows Hank building it. However, this issue has an easy explanation. Hank built the very first version of Cerebro at the CIA facility. In both the OG trilogy and DOFP, we see another Cerebro built inside the mansion. Naturally Charles and Erik helped Hank create the new Cerebro for the mansion during their training there.

Charles saying he met Erik when he was 17. This can be written off as Charles making a joke and trying to make himself seem younger than he is in front of a stranger. Or an exaggeration like when we say “i met him a hundred years ago.” So much has happened since he first met Erik, and he’s matured so much since then, that he probably in retrospect believes he may as well have been a teen in 1962. Not the smoothest explanation, yes, but an explanation nevertheless. Again keeping in mind that he just met Logan and has no way of knowing how close they will become, so he lets himself be a slightly unreliable narrator to a stranger with regard to his own age, as many people do. Another possibility is that Charles and Erik - soulmates that they are - did briefly and unknowingly encounter each other, or at least pass each other by, in their teens, but didn’t realize it until years later.

Charles’ awareness of Erik’s helmet. In FC, Charles knows his telepathy is blocked by Erik’s helmet, whereas in X1, he is confused as to why he can’t find Erik in Cerebro. However, Erik’s helmet in the OG trilogy is clearly not the same helmet as his helmet in First Class; the design is very different. Considering that he was always imprisoned for JFK’s death in every timeline (the DOFP change meant he escaped earlier than before), this means the old helmet was taken away from him when he was locked up. So this explains why Charles is confused as to why he can’t sense Erik in X1; he knows Erik’s old helmet was lost, and Erik hasn’t needed s helmet for years. He doesn’t realize until then that Erik has now obtained/created a new helmet, knowing that the anti-mutant legislation proposal is the start of the war.

Charles walking in the 80s. This one seems irreconcilable, but it does have two possible explanations. Either 1) Hank created an updated serum that enabled Charles to walk and use his powers, that only worked for a while and then failed again so Charles just committed himself to the wheelchair during the OG trilogy to avoid any more fuss. Or 2) Charles may have created a telepathic projection of himself walking as a way of showcasing his powers to the mutants he recruited. Furthermore, I theorize that perhaps the opening scene of TLS isn’t real at all, but rather Charles’ own La La Land what-if fantasy - in his grief for Jean’s apparent death and Erik’s Alkali Lake betrayal, he imagines his ideal version of events where instead of recruiting young Jean alone in his wheelchair, the Cuba accident never happened and thus he and Erik never parted ways and recruited Jean together. Obviously Charles’ walking appearance in X-Men Origins: Wolverine can’t be explained as a fantasy, but I honestly don’t care about that movie and I know hardly anyone else does either.

Moira MacTaggert’s lack of aging. This also has a few explanations. It could be that TLS shows a completely different woman from FC who happens to have the same name, and that is quite possible since CIA agent and doctor are two very different professions. Perhaps the doctor is a relative of Moira’s, i.e. her daughter or niece who was named after her - which I think is the most likely explanation. Another possibility is that Moira actually is a mutant who doesn’t age, and not a human. IIRC, there was a recent twist in the comics that revealed she is actually a mutant who doesn’t age. So that also could be the case. But fact that Charles erased Moira’s memories at the end of FC means that even if it is the same woman somehow, via either mutant longevity or massive amounts of de-aging cream & hair dye, she has no mental connection with what came before, so she in a sense is a different woman in TLS, no matter how you slice it.

Kitty Pryde’s powers. We never see Kitty use her powers for time travel before DOFP because there’s no need for it. Plus she’s quite young in TLS and so she probably didn’t even know yet that her abilities could phase through time as well as space.

Sabretooth & Wolverine, and Wolverine’s broken adamantium claws. I don’t care for either XMO:W or The Wolverine and just disregard them altogether. But if one must count them, then maybe after all those years Sabretooth just doesn’t care about his brother anymore and feels no need to mention their relationship when he’s devoted to Erik’s cause and Logan is in the way. (Similar to Charles and Mystique.) Also when it comes to Logan’s broken claws post-Wolverine, Erik’s very presence explains it; the threat of the Sentinels made it a necessity for Logan to have his adamantium claws back for self-defense, so Erik used his powers to put the adamantium, or something similar, back into the claws.

I’ll end with this note. Remember Erik & Rogue’s powers and Charles’ resurrection between TLS and the future of DOFP. Honestly, the fact that TLS essentially reverses two of its most major plot developments in the final moments, with Erik moving the chess piece and Charles waking up in his twin’s body, is proof enough that all the “continuity errors” do not actually make it impossible for these films to be happening in the same timeline. The “cure” wears off and Erik & Rogue are at full power again during the Sentinel war, and Charles is able to use his twin’s body to continue living and looking the same. So if there can be canon explanations as crazy as those, then there’s no way any of the explanations I just suggested for the other discrepancies can be completely impossible.

[gerec]

Hi! First of all, thank you for all your amazing cherik fic recommendations. You're literally doing a god's work 💜 Could you please recommend some good fics with Top!Charles? I'd also be okay with them switching. Thank you so much in advance 😊

Hi Anon - thank you for your lovely message and for your patience! Here are some great Top!Charles fics; there's a mix of canon and au along with some dom/sub and a/o ones that I hope you enjoy!

Beneath Me by Magnetism_bind

Charles is a young lord staying at his family's estate for the summer. Erik is his family's stable-hand.

Coup - Alpha!Charles dethrones Shaw and conquers his omega guard.

Treasure by professor

Knight Erik thinks he’s going to slay the dragon and take the beast’s treasure. He’s very, very wrong about that.

Masterpiece by professor

An artist sculpts his finest creation.

Coax me out my love low by tahariel (Frontseat 'verse series)

It’s hard enough waiting a year to meet the man you’re engaged to, but harder still when that man doesn’t even want to stay bonded to you. Charles is determined, however, not to let Erik get away.

deeper than swords (the sun and stars remix) by specficslut (homosociality)

Erik has been traded to a foreign king for a chest of gold and a hundred bushels of grain. In Westchester, he must learn to start a new life... and navigate the roles that have been thrust upon him, whether concubine or courtesan, consort or slave.

Heated Discussion by annejumps

Professor Lehnsherr is an omega and Professor Xavier is an alpha, but somehow in the weeks they've known each other, the issue has never come up....

The Watch by hllfire

Erik decides to take a break one Friday night, going to a club to try and meet someone for a one-night stand. In a dimly lit hallway, with a stranger behind him, he gets what he wants.

twilight by ikeracity, specficslut (homosociality)

"Volatility was a chemical property. Erik remembered Mrs. Berkowitz saying, with the rhythm of a chant, volatility was how likely a substance was to mist into air, and that was how he felt now, like he could dissolve into nothing at any moment, unless he fucked Charles so hard his eyes spun back in his head."

For someone who kills monsters for a living, Erik is irrationally conflicted about the monster in his bed.

Build you up, Break you apart by orphan_account

Charles makes quick work of rolling them over again so that he is once more on top of Erik. This time when Erik reels back to throw a punch, he finds himself immobile. With outstretched fingers, he reaches for the familiar sensation of metal particles but nothing comes to him and Erik’s pupils dilate, a frightening thought waking in its place. No one’s coming to rescue me.

In which Erik is an omega who takes heat suppressants despite the fact that they don't really work well. And on that one day he decides to stay over at Charles' place, his heat cycle starts.

Sharing by ikeracity

One night during the mutant road trip, Erik knocks on Charles's door and brusquely demands to be taken to bed. Charles, who has been very careful about staying out of Erik’s head, is disoriented by the haunted look in Erik’s eyes but is ultimately swayed by the fact that they’ve had this burgeoning tension between them since forever.

They then proceed to have The Saddest And Worst Sex Ever. Erik stalks off all humiliated and unhappy and Charles is confused until he works out that Erik was a virgin--at which point Charles feels equal parts guilty and furious that Erik's basically used him as an instrument of self-harm.

The next time it happens, Charles teaches Erik what it means to really make love.

awoke with a scar by mixture

It isn't so much about the alpha fighting for his honor, but what the alpha does afterwards that sets Erik's teeth on edge.

in the empty moments by soetry

Charles was the only alpha who had ever treated Erik with respect.

That, Erik thought wryly, was probably why his knot was the only one that Erik had ever wanted. 

twenty four hours from tulsa by intentation

After having self-emancipated (aka run away), Erik's been holing up in a shitty motel while he figures out his next step. When Charles Xavier moves into the room just down the hall, Erik discovers his new favorite pastime: sex.

To Have and To Hold by ikeracity

The wedding hasn't even started and Charles is already bored. When he excuses himself to go to the bathroom, he doesn't expect to find a gorgeous, stern-faced man having a quiet freak out at his reflection. He doesn't expect said gorgeous, stern-faced man to turn around and start climbing him like a tree. And he certainly doesn't expect to discover only after they've got their clothes back on that the man he just had glorious sex with is the groom.

A Force to Be Reckoned With by firstlightofeos

“No, no, no!” Erik exclaims, slamming his glass forcefully back down onto the bar. “Telepathy is impressive in theory, but realistically, no one’s powerful enough, or has enough control, to make you forget yourself or to get you to do anything you don’t want to do.”

“You sound very sure about that,” his companion says, taking a sip of his scotch. He tilts his head and raises an eyebrow. “I wonder if you’ve ever really met a telepath before.”

Taking Bets and Making Wagers by windchijmes

Erik is difficult and stubborn. Charles has a saintly level of persistence (and cunning). And neither of them can come to an agreement about who should bottom for their first time. So they have a bet. If Charles can make Erik beg for it, he wins.

And he gets to top.

When the Kids Are Away by dedkake

Charles and Erik have a free moment to themselves, but they're both tired and sore. Erik isn't going to let that get in his way.

Burger Queen by widgenstain

After seeing James in his "stylish" baseball cap that makes him look like a pasty truck-driver, I've decided that there has to be a fic with Charles driving a semi through the country and Erik as a lot lizard (= a hooker working the truck stops).

Rotten Rules by ellenchain

On Erik's first day, he can already tell that prison is indeed not a pony farm. Still, he can't help sticking his nose into dark machinations going on in the depths of the prison. He quickly learns that there is only one rule: eat or be eaten. In addition to all the rumors about dangerous inmates and a corrupt director, a charismatic man from block C in particular does not let him get a good night's sleep. But he too seems to have more secrets than he makes Erik believe ...

a traditional courtship by Helenish

Maybe it’s even a game between them; he catches Charles often enough, watching him, curious, bemused. He lets it go further than he would, otherwise.

[blankticket]

The assumption is flattering, but…

"Not too sure I'm past that, Klaus." Vash winces, knowing that it's probably not what the other guy wanted to hear. Unconsciously he places his prosthetic hand onto his own chest, mirroring the other physically in tandem with his empathy. "I… Ended up seeing a future 'me', too, and he's hardly recognizable—as 'me', I mean."

Eriks. The name his predecessor had gently called out that day in the forest, to no apparent avail. That ghost looked haunted himself, with stilted movement and little affect besides one moment of tenuous lucidity. His arm, his glasses, his coat; they were all missing. His brother's name had gone unrecognized.

Losing memories here, then regaining them, had been an ominous echo of that meeting: without warning or gradation, Vash was destined to become someone else.

"I think… Even so, what's worth worryin' about is who you wanna be. What y'wanna make yourself into."

His brother had tried to reform Vash into an ideal Plant, something perfectly inhuman. But ultimately, he'd still remained himself, the man on all the bounty posters; Vash the Stampede. Surely, no other worldly force would permanently take that from him…?

"'Least, that's what I'm choosing t'make of it. To at least let my future self be proud of who I am now, n'how I kept trying to be better, for us. So that when we meet who we'll be, they'll look at us kindly."

Klaus is surprised--or shocked rather to hear that there is someone else who has gone through the same thing. He isn't quite sure what to make of it, but there's some kind of relief in knowing he isn't alone.

Vash...he's able to articulate what Klaus is feeling in words. "That's...," he breathes out a sigh and shakes his head, "that's exactly how it feels. I feel like I'm a different version of me, but I am still me." He places a hand on his chest thoughtfully.

"What did you do? To..navigate everything?"

[thephantomessoftheopera]

Notes on Gaston Leroux‘s „The Phantom of the Opera“ - Chapter 27: „End of the Ghost‘s Love Story“

Artwork by @flaviamarquesart

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“End of the Ghost’s Love Story” is the most powerful chapter in the novel, because it reveals the full extent of Erik’s love for Christine. It is also the one that makes the story truly extraordinary, because it redeems his character and lifts him above the level of a gothic villain, who is usually defeated and punished in the end. This is why he is generally considered a “Byronic Hero” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byronic_hero). The Byronic hero is a complex, often tragic form of romantic anti-hero who is generally more villain than traditional hero, but who has at least one redeeming quality (usually connected to love) which makes him a sympathetic figure despite his flaws and/or crimes. The character type was created by the English poet Lord Byron in his works such as “The Corsair” and “Don Juan”, and became extremely popular in the 19th century. Except for his looks, Erik fits that classic character type in almost all other aspects (highly intelligent, tortured, violent, ruthless, manipulative and driven by an all-consuming passion).

The chapter’s title also makes it clear that the whole thing is a love story at its core - everything in the novel happened because Erik fell in love with Christine. It is, and has always been, the story of Erik’s love - he is the one character we follow up until the end.

The final chapter is narrated by Leroux again, but it draws on what the Persian supposedly told him when he went to visit him in his flat in the rue de Rivoli. When the Persian wakes up after losing consciousness in the water, he and Raoul are resting in the Louis-Philippe room, and Erik and Christine are taking care of them. Raoul has already woken up before the Persian, and is now asleep again.

The room itself astounds the Persian in how ordinary and old-fashioned it looks, and how much it contrasts with Erik’s general appearance (remember that the Persian had never been in Erik’s house before). Erik explains to him that the furniture once belonged to his mother, which explains why the style is so different from his bedroom, which is decidedly more „Erik“. The Persian also wonders why Christine, who is moving silently through the room and then sitting down beside the fireplace, ignores both Raoul and himself when tries to call her. The Persian believes that Christine is reading “The Imitation of Christ”, which is significant and which I will come back to a little later. The “opposites” theme is also present in this scene again, describing Erik’s figure as black and a demon, and Christine’s as white and an angel. The Persian finally falls asleep again.

When he wakes for the second time, Erik has already delivered him back to his flat according to the promise he made to “his wife”. The Persian immediately sends to find out what happened to Raoul, and learns that Raoul has disappeared and that Philippe’s body has been found on the shore of the lake under the opera house. The Persian has no doubt that Philippe was drowned by Erik (or “the siren”), and decides to denounce him to the police. However, his testimony is ridiculed, and he - like Raoul - is taken for a lunatic. The Persian then decides to write everything down and later hands his manuscript to Leroux (which is what we’ve been reading in these last chapters).

When he has finished writing his account down, Erik comes to visit him. He is clearly unwell and described as weak, leaning against the wall and “pale as a sheet”. The Persian accuses him of murdering Philippe and wants to know what happened to Raoul and Christine, whether they are dead or alive. Erik denies murdering Philippe, but the Persian doesn’t believe him. We don’t really know the truth though, so the “murder mystery” has no definite resolution and turns into more of a side note.

Erik tells the Persian that he is about to “die of love” for Christine. As I’ve mentioned before, I believe that the most likely physical cause of his death would really be the gunshot that Raoul fired at him, and a possible infection following that injury which would lead to his precarious state of health as seen in this chapter. This could metaphorically also be described as “dying of love” (because he wouldn’t have caught that bullet if he hadn’t been in love).

After turning the scorpion, Christine begged him to save Raoul, and she had already offered before to accept his proposal if he gave her the key to the torture chamber, but Erik did not care then, because he did not believe her. But when she swears to him that she will become his “living wife”, it‘s different as he finally sees in her eyes what he has been hoping to see - Christine’s genuine commitment. She means to go through with her promise and is accepting him as her husband at that moment - and this is why her commitment is powerful enough to break through to him.

According to their agreement, Erik takes the Persian aboveground, but since Raoul probably wouldn’t agree to leave, Erik drugs him and locks him up in the dungeon beneath the fifth cellar. Then he returns to Christine, who stands calmly waiting for him. Erik suddenly feels “shyer than a little child” as he approaches Christine, but she does not back away from him. He tenderly kisses her forehead and is overwhelmed with how good it feels to kiss her, as no woman has ever allowed him to, not even his mother. Christine even leans into his touch a little, and remains close to him after the kiss, „as if it were perfectly natural“.

Fear and disgust are very powerful, primal emotions, but Christine‘s feelings for Erik are strong enough to overcome both. Considering that no one, not even the Persian, was able to even look at Erik’s face without horror, I feel that Christine must have cared very deeply for him, as she allows his kiss without fear and without recoiling from him at all, even after everything he has put her through.

He falls at her feet and starts crying of happiness, and seeing his tears, Christine starts to cry as well. Erik tears off his mask so that he won’t lose any of her tears on his skin, and still Christine shows no sign of horror or disgust. And she doesn’t only allow him to touch her, but she also touches him of her own free will and takes his hand, saying “poor, unhappy Erik”. I feel that this is the moment when the full expanse of his life’s tragedy truly hits her. She is not only the first woman, but the first person in his entire life to treat him with tenderness and acceptance.

Gratitude and love for her overwhelm him and make him realize that he has forced her choice. He puts the gold wedding ring into her hand, setting her free and telling her that he knows she loves Raoul and that she is free to go and marry him whenever she pleases. He „calmly cuts his heart to pieces“ and puts her happiness before his own in this final expression of true love and sacrifice. For as damaged as he was, the ending proves that Erik truly loved Christine because his love is ultimately selfless. There is also no bitterness in his feelings towards Christine after she leaves - he has always loved her, and still continues to love her. He still feels protective of her: “I’d better not hear that anyone has touched a single hair on her head!” Christine gave him “all the happiness in the world”, and he is grateful to her for this gift. His love for her redeems him as a character and proves to be his moral compass - before, he considered himself “outside the human race” and therefore not bound by common moral values.

In the previous chapter, Christine is shown reading what the Persian believes to be “The Imitation of Christ”. I don’t think that is a coincidence, and I also believe that the name “Christine” was perhaps even chosen for her on purpose (she was originally named Pauline, according to Leroux’s manuscript). Christine becomes a “Christ figure” here in two ways: through her sacrifice, she saves the lives of Raoul, the Persian and everyone in the Opera. But she also offers acceptance and love to a sinner, an outcast who has been shunned by society - and this is an extremely powerful gesture. She possessed the strength necessary to see Erik as a human being, and that is what sets her apart from everyone else. Her love here transcends the realm of romantic love and becomes almost divine - all-encompassing, forgiving, healing.

Christine may superficially fit the traditional image of a “damsel in distress”, but the would-be hero who was coming to rescue her didn’t get very far, nor could he do anything to save her. The only hero who saved Christine was Christine herself - and she also saved everyone else: Raoul, the Persian, everyone in the Opera, and Erik. Both Christine and Erik show incredible bravery in this chapter: Christine‘s bravery shows in her truly accepting Erik as a man and in saving Raoul, and Erik‘s bravery consists in letting her go, relinquishing his one chance in his life of having everything he has ever dreamed of.

Erik then goes to free Raoul and brings him to Christine, where Raoul and Christine kiss. Christine swears to Erik that she will come back to bury him with the ring, and then she finally kisses him before they leave.

Seeing Erik weeping and overcome with emotion, the Persian no longer doubts him. Erik tells the Persian that when he feels he is close to dying, he will send the letters that Christine had left with him and a few of her personal objects to him, and that this would be the cue for the Persian to put an obituary notice in the newspaper so that Christine and Raoul would know. Interestingly, that entire arrangement hinged on Erik himself announcing his death without anyone confirming it, because he could only mail things to the Persian if he was still alive. This leaves a lot of blank space for the reader’s imagination, because who knows if he really died…? The Persian, at least, never saw him again, but announced three weeks later that “Erik is dead”.

Next chapter >>

[your-angle-of-music]

Okay, but one of the most striking differences between musical Phantom and book Erik to me (besides their gaping disparity in sluttiness levels) is that musical Phantom wants to make Christine into him, while book Erik desperately wants to make himself into her. The most glaring example of this is probably the “Music of the Night” scene in the musical, with which I have...issues.

Now, in the book, what’s happening in this moment is Christine screaming at her mysterious kidnapper while said mysterious kidnapper grovels at her feet and wallows in a bit of self-loathing for a while: Christine describes how “he accuses himself, he curses himself, he implores my forgiveness!” and then “lays at [her] feet an immense and tragic love.” He clearly does have a super uneven and manipulative power dynamic with Christine, but one gets the sense that he doesn’t want to think about that. He isn’t trying to sell Christine anything, or to put her under some spell. He’s putting almost all of his cards on the table right away and begging her to forgive him, or to save him. 

And, of course, at the climax of the novel, it becomes increasingly clear that he sees Christine as a representation of the normal life he so desperately craves. He says so himself: “I want to have a nice, quiet flat, with ordinary doors and windows and a wife inside it, like anybody else! A wife whom I could love and take out on Sundays and keep amused on week-days.” I don’t doubt that he cares for Christine for her compassion and wit and courage and voice, but I think that more than anything, he is in love with the idea of “a wife,” any wife, any person he can pour his love and creativity into and who will “love [him] for [him]self” instead of for his conveniently murderous tendencies. Between his obsession with a public church wedding and the Sunday walks, it’s clear that Erik wants to be seen, by Christine and by everyone. And in that vein, he views her as an escape from the isolation he has imposed on himself; he exclaims, “I'm sick and tired of having a forest and a torture-chamber in my house and of living like a mountebank, in a house with a false bottom!” He does not want to be magical or secretive anymore; he wants to climb into the light in a real and physical way. The fact that he views Christine this way is dehumanizing and objectifying and unfair, and it’s definitely not a healthy basis for a relationship. People don’t belong on pedestals. But it’s still a markedly different situation from the one in the musical.

So, that being said, what is up with “The Music of the Night?”

“Turn your face away from the garish light of day,” sings the Phantom. “Purge your thoughts of the life you knew before,” sings the Phantom. “Let your darker side give in,” sings the Phantom. He doesn’t really want to be lifted up and saved — he wants to drag Christine down with him, and he is trying to convince her that her oh-so-ordinary life cannot compare to his glamorous one, instead of acting genuinely vulnerable. Her actual expressed personality and desires (“all I want is freedom, a world with no more night”) are disposable because he thinks he sees a darkness in her that’s like his own. If he thinks she has a “darker side,” then that means he is “dark” in a moral way, and he has almost a sense of pride in his own evilness that’s a far cry from book Erik’s claim that “I am not really wicked...If you loved me I should be as gentle as a lamb; and you could do anything with me that you pleased”. No, this Phantom doesn’t want to be gentle with Christine, and he wants her to do what he pleases.

And furthermore, it means that the musical Phantom has completely abandoned hope that he could ever escape from the life he has made. Maybe it means he’s less deluded than book Erik: “either way you choose, you cannot win,” he says during the “Final Lair” sequence; this version of the Phantom really doesn’t believe that Christine loves him the way he wants to be loved, or that she ever could. But maybe it just means he’s more hopeless. Before, when he tells her “pity comes too late, / turn around and face your fate: / an eternity of this before your eyes,” we are reminded that this Phantom does not intend to put on his mask and pretend he’s normal for the rest of their lives — he really does imagine his life as just him and Christine in the basement of the opera house, miserable and angry and hidden away, forever and ever. That fantasy seems almost more childish to me than book Erik’s, like a lifelong tantrum. 

Both of these versions of the character are immensely tragic, although in entirely different ways. And ultimately, only book Erik is truly saved. After he admits to Christine, “I know you love the boy” and lets her go, he makes the journey to see the Daroga at his own apartment, in the upper world, for the first time, and takes off his mask on his own. It may be too late, but he is learning and changing. But at the end of the musical, the Phantom does what he always does. He finds a trap door and he disappears. He decides to go deeper into the dark.

[glassprism]

How can Raoul keep saying there is no Phantom of the Opera right after Buquet is killed? He doesn't believe her, tells Christine she's just dreaming, uses her for bait as well. This is why I liked the ending of the 1943 version. Tell all the men in her life off and just focus on her career instead.

Because he’s right - there is no Phantom of the Opera. Ghosts don’t kill people; people kill people. And he is exactly correct, because the Phantom is a man. Keep in mind as well that Christine in the musical’s rendition of the rooftop scene is panicked and sounds almost out of her mind (”My God, who is this man, who hunts to kill? I can’t escape from him, I never will!”), and while it certainly depends on the actor how they play this, at least part of why Raoul says there is no Phantom is an attempt to calm her down: it’s not real, Christine, it can’t hurt you, it was only a dream.

The way I think of it is if one of my friends came running to me, screaming that they saw a UFO and it almost abducted them and, uh, blasted apart that cow over there. Could UFOs exist? Possibly, but this isn’t the time to debate that when my friend is almost hysterical. What would I say to calm them down? It wasn’t a UFO, it was just a weird light, that cow got hit by a car, nobody is trying to abduct you, please, breathe, listen to logic. And if we take the analogy further, I’d be right in it not being a UFO; it’s actually a.... I dunno, cardboard spaceship someone is manipulating to trick people into thinking it’s a UFO. And that poor cow was strapped with explosives, I don’t know.

Raoul using Christine as bait (five seconds after telling her she doesn’t have to perform) is probably his least laudatory act, and always used as fodder for people who don’t like Raoul. (”He’s a jerk! He uses Christine as bait!”) I do prefer the 2004 movie’s take on this, where Raoul initially goes on the defensive, sleeping outside Christine’s room and watching her to make sure she’s not abducted, only resorting to using her as bait after he fights the Phantom in the graveyard. You get the sense there that Raoul is going, “I can’t keep my guard up all my life, we have to go on the offensive, we have to catch the Phantom because he’s not going to stop until we do.”

Raoul in the musical kind of jumps to that last part immediately, and in many ways it highlights his brash, youthful way of solving things. But he tells Christine his reasoning himself: “Yet while he lives, he will haunt us til we’re dead.” And again - Raoul is right. In the next scene, the Phantom is trying to hypnotize Christine at her father’s grave, when she is in a very vulnerable moment. I kind of headcanon that that’s what convinces Christine herself to perform; she’s thinking, “I really won’t be free of this man until he’s caught, he’s willing to follow me all the way to my father’s grave and pose as him, he has to be stopped.” I feel like that’s something that gets brushed aside a lot: a lot of what Raoul says is correct.

The 1943 movie is, interestingly, ahead of its time in many ways in having Christine choose her career over the two (three? Depends on whether you think Erique Claudin being her father is canon) men in her life. As someone who is utterly uninterested in romance and has already made the choice to focus on career and never have a romantic relationship or children, I applaud her and the way that Christine decides she’s not going to be relegated to a love interest at the end. And I will certainly support bucking the trend of constant hetero-romances and shipping her with Meg or Carlotta or whatever.

At the same time... I gotta say, I’m tired of the 1943 movie constantly being held up as the pinnacle of, “Christine made the right choice! Screw all the men in her life! Raoul and Erik BOTH sucked!” etc. etc. etc., as if this opinion is somehow superior. Raoul is flawed. Erik is flawed. Raoul has his good points and develops as a character into a better person. Erik has his good points and develops (a LOT) as a character into a better person. It’s what makes the show fascinating and I, personally, love exploring all three of them, their changing relationships, and their similarities and differences. So that line of analysis (or perhaps, lack of analysis) that goes, “Both men are terrible and suck and to hell with both of them...” is, ultimately, supremely uninteresting to me.

And there’s my hot take of the day, I suppose.

[raincitygirl76]

I absolutely agree with @mal3vol3nt that Wilhelm deserves to have untainted memories of his brother. I also think that Erik, regardless of his closeness to August, would have taken it amiss when August leaked revenge porn of his little brother. In fact, my head canon is that Erik would’ve given August a black eye and then proceeded to never speak to him again for the rest of their lives except when absolutely necessary in public. Because August’s actions are unforgivable.

That said, I don’t think Erik would’ve contemplated for a moment going to the police. But I believe he would’ve wanted August to face SOME consequences, whereas it seemed like Kristina never planned to even mention to August that she had caught him in the act. Not until she needed him as Wilhelm’s backup, at which point her rebuke of her cousin’s son was immediately followed by Kristina offering him everything he wanted in life on a silver platter. So I doubt August really took it on board that she didn’t like his actions.

I also suspect Erik would’ve come down on Kristina’s side when it came to Wilhelm denying the video. But I think he would’ve been more compassionate about it than their mother was, and also more strategic. Kristina used sheer force of personality to metaphorically bludgeon Wilhelm into doing what she wanted him to do. It worked in the short term but ultimately blew up in her face.

Erik would’ve been gentler in his reasoning, I suspect, and probably more effective at first convincing Wilhelm to deny the video, and then CONTINUE denying it. I mean, yes, Kristina got the desired result in 1.06. But then her only surviving child gave her the silent treatment all Christmas break. And as soon as he was put in front of reporters again a few months later, he retracted the lie she’d convinced him to tell. In the long run, Kristina’s manipulation did not work. If Erik had been the one in charge of convincing Wilhelm, I think he would’ve been more efficient.

It would’ve been MUCH harder for Wille to come out in 2.06 if Erik were still alive. Because Erik was a very loving big brother, but ultimately, like Kristina, he probably would’ve prioritized protecting the image of the monarchy. And it would’ve been harder for Wille to rebel, because Erik was affectionate with him in a way that Kristina and Ludvig really aren’t.

I’m not saying Wille’s parents don’t love him, but they’re lousy at showing it. Erik was good at showing it, good at making Wille truly believe he was loved (because he was). I think if Erik were the one wanting him to stay in the closet with the general public, Wille would be more inclined to listen. And more inclined to believe the secrecy was necessary to protect Wille himself, rather than to protect the monarchy. And I’m sure that’s what Erik would’ve believed.

But if Erik were still alive, Wille wouldn’t have to give the jubilee speech in the first place. And he never would’ve been initiated into the Society, so his first night with Simon would never have happened, and August couldn’t have recorded it. Wilhelm and Simon would’ve probably gotten together at the Eriksson house during Parents’ Weekend instead. A lot of things would’ve been different if Erik hadn’t crashed his Ferrari that weekend. Which is presumably the major reason Lisa killed him off.

What are your thoughts on Erik? I feel like we only got to see him for a very short time, and only through Wille's eyes, and then we were all shocked by his death and people tend not to speak ill of the dead, but... I don't know. He seemed really nice and a good big brother, and yes it was nice that he didn't use any gendering words when talking about Wille's "crush", but he was also August's friend, and part of the Society, whose values are... Not the nicest. Also, in the first episode he insisted for Wille to let August carry the bag even though it clearly made him uncomfortable, he laughed when August said that horrible thing about girls and he told Wille he had to keep up appearances. I don't think he was nearly as bad as August or the queen, of course, but I don't think he was absolutely perfect either. Maybe through Wille's eyes, yes, but I think the fandom thinks a bit too highly of him, and I don't think that would be realistic for the show. As you said before, they all screw up, so why wouldn't Erik?

Okay this will be a bit long....

I definitely don't think Erik is a picture perfect human, but I think he is a perfect character (again, I can't praise Lisa's character writing enough).

He has about 10-15 minutes of total screen time (?), but we still manage to see the complexity in him, and get mixed feelings.

I think we all have sympathy with him and mourn his death because of Wille. There is no doubt he was the most important human in Wille's life and that Wille has put him on this pedistal, as you tend to do with bigger siblings when you are young. And there is no doubt that Erik loved Wilhelm and cared about him being happy, but! There is a big but...

These two boys was raised differently, simply because Erik was the crown prince. His destiny was decided from before he left the womb, and he was raised to follow his mother's footsteps - the monarchy above all.

We see that peak through, when he speaks with Wille before he leaves him at Hillerska. A mentality Wille does not have. He didn't need to, because he was not supposed to secure the monarchies future and carry the duties on his shoulders.

I have no doubt in my mind that Erik was a good brother to Wilhelm, but I also think Wilhelm didn't see the flaws he had, because he looked to much up to him. He saw Erik as perfect. And I genuinely think Erik would accept Wilhelm's sexuality, because as long as Erik was alive, the monarchy is safe. And he would also accept Wilhelm fooling around with Simon, because he would see it as the teenage/boarding school fling you have.

I'm sure Erik fucked around a lot. He knows how it is, and he would see Wilhelm as the teen he is, and not as a piece in this big institution (as the queen does now).

I actually think Erik would love to take the whole weight of the crown's duties, for Wilhelm to be a happy carefree teenager. He has major big brother energy, and as long as Wilhelm behaved and didn't cause trouble, Erik would want nothing but his happiness.

But as you point out, we see his sketchy behavior as well, and I love that it is there. That he wasn't made to be this unrealistically perfect brother/prince, because why would he be. He was brought up in this privileged environment surrounded by people like himself who collectively decided they are above everyone else. And I don't think Erik fully understand why fitting in is so hard for Wilhelm. Erik fits in with this group of friends. He has more in common with August, that Wilhelm may realize... for now.

Now that Wille has to put on Erik's shoes, I think he might discover other sides of Erik he wasn't aware of before. His polished image of his brother might not be so perfect after all. I don't know how I feel about this tbh, because I don't want Wilhelm do distance himself from Erik and his memory of him. And maybe I read too much into it. But the "Once a brother always a brother" thing, and Wilhem being reminded how close Erik actually was with August might hint it?

[palmett-hoes]

i so agree on the thea/kevin thing. i do think they end up together though - not because i particularly think they're good for each other but because sometimes people end up in relationships they settle for and maybe they change and maybe they don't but sometimes life is just like that. thats kind of why i particularly like how nora makes it clear that allison doesn't end up with a man because she tends to seek out the anger issues + doesn't want to help themselves type of man. it b liek dat smt

hmm okay. i think first i want to address what i mean when i answer asks, especially one like the kevin and thea ask you're mentioning. just because i'm writing it doesn't necessarily mean i'm committing to the idea 100% and it doesn't mean it's what i believe 100% will happen. it's a possibility and more than that it's an idea i'm exploring for the moment

that was an analysis of how i view their dynamic, with some predictions based on that specific interpretation, and the end part was a best-case scenario if everything worked out perfectly. but you're right, a best-case scenario doesn't always happen. people's lives don't always play out perfectly and they don't always find the perfect right person that they're with forever. and sometimes they settle for something that's stable or familiar and that's not even necessarily a bad thing

what's really great about transformative work like fandom is that i don't have to stick to just one idea. i can entertain the idea of a perfect world for kevin and thea where they break up but stay friends and help each other overcome the trauma and conditioning of the nest, and at the same time i can also entertain the world where they fall a little flat of that, and still end up together and sometimes kevin sits up at night and looks at his wife and asks himself "do i love her? am i happy?" and knows that the answer isn't a resounding yes, but that she's still his partner and they have a daughter together who he wouldn't trade for anything. analytically, you can make an argument for either of those pathways, or even one where kevin and thea get marriage counseling and end up the happiest most in-love couple in the world, or a million others

you can create a post-canon where anything happens. one where kevin meets the love of his life, one where kevin never meets anyone, one where kevin suffers a career ending injury at 26 that this time he truly never recovers from. as a creator i can explore each and every one of these options for him and think of them all as equally real and equally possible, even if i'm thinking about two completely different ones at the exact same time

it's a story. it all comes down to what i'm feeling at that moment, what I'm looking to explore. do i need a pick-me-up? do i want catharsis? am i angry? sad? cruel? do i want to deconstruct the notion of the cold war nuclear family? do i just want a good time? you get out what you bring in

whatever i end up typing is a reflection of what i'm thinking and feeling in that moment. i may want to look at it completely differently in another moment

but i do agree that i like to keep a little reality regardless, and i also like that nora did too. she didn't give everyone a perfect happy ending with a marriage and kids and i think that's right for the statement she was making with the series

and sometimes i like that, sometimes i want a world that's a little softer around the edges for a bit. that's for me to decide

but if you want my strictest, most true-to-life, mirror of reality take on what happens in post-canon, okay

---

i still don't think that kevin and thea end up together, because there's at least two more years on kevin's college contract and no guarantee he'll go onto thea's pro team from there, and i don't think either of them will really be trying to stay in touch. long-distance is hard. long-distance when you're not even trying is impossible. i don't even think they explicitly break up it's just they realize they haven't spoken in months and don't even have each others' current addresses so they avoid eye contact if they ever happen to be in the same room and eventually one of them has a 30-second news spot about dating someone new and that puts the final shred of uncertainty between them to rest

kevin never really finds someone. he's too committed to exy, as a pro-player and as whatever he does after, and he's never going to tell anyone that his life is technically owned by the mafia. maybe he has a convenient marriage or two with some other celebrity that ends in divorce. he's not really particularly concerned with it and when he's old he doesn't regret it. maybe he never wanted a partner in the first place

it's aaron and katelyn that i think are the most likely to end up the way you described kevin and thea. they get married and they stay married but really they're married to their jobs as doctors. and as the years go on they sometimes wonder why they're still together but it's too much of a pain to sort through their shared finances and they're not unhappy, so they stay together. maybe one or both has an affair that they hide, but even if the other knew it probably wouldn't change anything. their house is really expensive and in a really nice location, it's not worth the divorce

dan and matt also probably get married, but i don't think it stays. matt seems like the type to want kids, and dan seems like the type to hate the idea. irrevocable difference. eventually they have to split. matt definitely remarries and has his kids. dan may remarry, she may not, her job is her primary concern. they stay amicable, but it's tense for a few years. they really rocks the foxes, because it's the only internal breakup between two of them

andrew and neil are both the most stable and the most happy of the foxes, because they know how to communicate and they know how to fight for each other. but also because neither of them has any grand notions of romance or true love. they didn't build their relationship on passion, they built it on understanding and cooperation. to them, a person to wake up to in the morning or sit by a window with IS a miracle. it shocks a lot of the foxes who all either subconsciously or not thought that their own relationships were better or healthier or more destined to last than andrew and neil's. over the years all the other foxes have come to them at least once, in private, looking for advice. they'd be lying if the irony of so many years of being given unasked for relationship advice coming full circle didn't make them just a but smug

nicky and erik are the other long-term success of the foxes. if nicky can stay with the twins at their worst he can shelter through normal relationship drama. still the hardest part for him is when the relationship ultimately becomes familiar, as they all do. he's always buying relationship books and planning dates and setting up relationship retreats because he's honestly so afraid of being alone if he likes the flame die. sometimes it's honestly the biggest strain on his relationship, all the frantic effort he puts in, but they get through it

renee never marries or really has any significant relationships. she says she's married to jesus and her job but she's still always a little bit haunted by her past in a way that holds her back from truly opening up to a partner. she adopts several kids though, somewhat later in life, because she believes that she can pass on the chances that stephanie gave her, and that's more important than romance

allison has a string of wild marriages and even wilder divorces that are usually the highlight of fox get-togethers. she has a child by accident and she isn't a wonderful mother. dan and renee are both very involved with her kid, for many years more than she is. when the kid is nearly an adult allison finally pulls her head out of her ass to see that she missed so much of the only relationship she can't annul. at that point she quits relationships and focuses on fixing things. it's a slow, painful process, but they manage to be close later in life

---

so, do i necessarily WANT all of these things to happen? no, many of them are quite sad. but all of them are good stories, and all of them are realistic in the sense that they are reflective of what happens in real people's lives

this is one version of how i think post-canon plays out. of course, i may change my mind later, or fiddle with the details, or want to play with an entirely different idea for one or more or all of the characters

[okurrroye]

Ok all I wanted was to laugh about John getting curb stomped but the Ayo tag is a fucking nightmare like wow

Disclaimer I have shit memory so if I say something that doesn’t add up fact wise let me know. But I’m pissed off so here we go-

(FYI all of your opinions should be kept to yourself, so don’t comment if you fail to read my entire post so thanks)

I know this has been discussed, but there are things that have been left out of the argument, or hasn’t even been considered when it comes to the big I speak no I see no I hear no evil scene y’all making it out to be of Ayo disarming Bucky. So gather around here’s the part where you hear me out without scrolling off regardless of your stance on the situation, because I’m here for all opinions afterwards.

First off I can’t even understand why this is controversial at all considering the history that led to this moment. Oh wait I lied it’s literally because either you have your head to far up Bucky’s ass or because he’s a man or because he’s white, or because *ding ding ding * all of the above. And now you’re mad because how dare this black bitch have the nerve-the audacity to do that to poor little old Bucky (now insert the part where you either scroll off, or put your two unwanted cents in before I finish). And this is where you all want to use the empty ass belief that ThE aRm Is A gIfT, or empty ass excuse tHaT’s HiS aRm. Also someone else pointed out well if they didn’t trust him than they shouldn’t have given it to him in the first place. Which yes all are true, but also not at the same time. *Gasp* yes somethings can not be one or other, because ✨ grey area ✨.

Now I don’t know what world you’re living in where you think a gift can not be taken back, and I use the term gift loosely because you can’t even call it that honestly. Because in reality the whole reason he has the arm in the first place is because he needed a new one for infinity war like duh, why have crap heap that’s easily damageable when they can make an indestructible one, to live or not to live like it’s not a hard choice. Then he disappeared for five years so it would be kinda difficult to get an arm back that doesn’t exist anymore. But by the time everyone came back I think an arm was at the bottom of their to do list, or not to mention the fact well it’s already been made, and you probably don’t know how to properly function without both arms yet and can’t afford a normal one yourself so why not just keep it instead of wasting all the time, effort, and resources of making it, but idk I guess that’s a stretch. But since people likes using the gift excuse guess what, a gift is just something you couldn’t afford to do yourself so someone else was kind enough to do it for you (^^^), but in every other since of the word it really belongs to them not you. So let’s give an example shall we, now your parent(s) gave you something you wanted (shit someone else may have bought it for you) but you fucked around and got in trouble and now you’re grounded. Now depending on your parent(s) you’ll either get your ass beat or your shit will get confiscated, or both if you fuck up enough. Now do you think you have any right to say what they can or can’t do? -Yeah I didn’t think so and if you thought otherwise well here comes round two of another ass whopping or the first one if you’re lucky. Or on rare occasions some (white) kids don’t get physically disciplined, but you’re still going to pay the price regardless.

So same situation (yes I know I can’t compare an amputees arm to an object, but I only say that because Bucky is more than that, more than just a arm) but also very much not because in Bucky’s and Ayo’s situation it is much-MUCH worse obviously, but apparently it’s not obvious considering that there’s a debate in the first place. Or in other words you think Bucky’s feelings-FEELINGS are more important then Ayo’s and Wakanda the truth. Which is you’re lucky that it was only his feelings that got hurt, because she (and Yama) could have killed him and everyone else in that room easily so let’s all thank Ayo (and Yama) for her kindness and mercy first and foremost, also for not taking back both the arm and the shield completely. Because that arm and shield is Wakandan property ok so let’s get that straight, so she had every right to take it if she wanted to-whenever or wherever (which also falls into the part where the Dora does has jurisdiction there, and almost anywhere else since most likely every country wants or have vibranium now, and because Wakanda could literally flatten the whole world so yeah they’re going to have a legal pass because who’s gonna want to fuck with them) but she didn’t key word didn’t which should’ve been a clue they would never take the arm or shield back because he is disabled considering even after what Bucky (& John) did.

Not only is it the property of Wakanda but it’s from the only place that was willing, and did help Bucky in every way a person could be helped literally saving this man physically, mentally, and emotionally- like please. Specifically the royal family themselves firsthand which need I remind you is related to the former King that was killed by the man that Bucky escaped from prison without discussing it with them first. That same King, family, and country that Ayo is from, loves, and is to serve and protect. That she will-IS sacrificing and dedicates her life to...she failed them all-failed herself when T’Chaka was murdered like bruh- like that should speak for it self like that is the ultimate betrayal like he literally spat in their fucking face, especially Ayo’s considering she’s the one who gave Bucky back his mind, his freedom and after all that after everything they did for him they still didn’t trust him, and betrayed him by not telling him he had a fail safe in his arm?! Yeah-no big sike, anyone with a brain knows prosthetics because here’s the real kicker ITS NOT HIS ARM thus it’s O M G...removable. Yes you read that correctly r-e-m-o-v-a-b-l-e. Now put that together with the fact that Ayo is highly skilled and an overall badass I don’t think it would be that hard for her to fucking figure out how to dislocate it with a few pressure points considering that’s literally the whole point of striking a pressure point (if he still had his arm then that hit would’ve stopped it from working, but since it’s fake that mf popped right off). Pressure points are used to disable someone, thus Ayo disabling a disabled by disarming his arm to deescalate the situation go figure. It wasn’t a fail safe it’s just skill and common sense that everyone failed to have in the moment and used as a last resort because oh no Bucky’s face, like boo fucking hoo he did it to himself by breaking their trust first, and defending that bitch. Instead of him waiting for the Dora to have Zemo in custody first, what did Bucky do instead? He had the fucking audacity (and that’s how you use the word) to use that same arm against Ayo, against Wakanda. That speaks volumes considering out of respect as a friend or whatever close bond they have (because they definitely have a connection after what they went through together) Ayo still gave him a warning, and time to do what he had to do before they came for Zemo’s ass. Let it be known she didn’t have to do that at all because her loyalty is to and should be to her country first but in those eight hours it wasn’t, it was in the trust of their friendship so therefore she literally was endangering her well being by giving Bucky just that courtesy, and I don’t think you all consider her position in that predicament and thanks to Bucky she could’ve gotten her status revoked, thrown in jail, or worse killed for disobeying orders because let’s not forget Chadwick unfortunately has passed away, and thus it’s a fact that T’Challa is no longer in charge since Marvel will respect that with tampering with his character, so I don’t want to hear she would’ve been just fine because we’ve seen how the royal counsel has a big say on what goes and doesn’t go considering they did not give a single fuck about their own next of kin, Erik who has every right as them, but would have easily killed him just because he was an ‘outsider’ if T’Challa didn’t speak up for him (I mean they abandoned him while leaving him to fend for himself, killed his father and covered it up so wouldn’t put it past them). So if you think when Ayo fucked up again about retrieving Zemo because she trusted, and helped this outsider over her own kind she definitely would’ve been considered a traitor and be punished for her actions.

Can you imagine the hurt, and betrayal they felt? No apparently not, because it’s all about how he’s disabled and how could she take his arm (like uh she literally left it, and the shield for them to keep, and it’s not like he would’ve died without it to begin with unlike Bucky who was willing to sacrifice Ayo’s entire livelihood) when the fact that disabled people say constantly for others to stop putting their disabilities before them, and how they’re just as capable as everyone else. “They are a someone with a disability, not someone who is disabled,” which is absolutely true, because they’re more than that but everyone seems to forget that all of sudden when Ayo detaches Bucky’s arm (I wonder why) and all of sudden he doesn’t have control of his own body like what- he literally used his entire body nonbrainwashed to stab them in the back like miss me with that bs. Him spending five seconds without his arm doesn’t compare especially since they forgave him without even at least an apology at that.

Detaching his arm was a warning that he needed to learn, because they were letting him know, and I emphasize that that arm does not belong to him so how he dare try to use it against the people who gave it to him after they fed, housed, and freed him when no one else could, or would when he’s done nothing in return while as a repayment was being a fucking ingrate. All the while facing no consequences, not even the need for a fucking bandaid *mic drop*.

[maybecoolwords]

A Little Insecure ..

Pairing: Erik Killmonger x Reader

Word count: 1.5 k

Summary: You were feeling insecure and Erik comes to cheer you up ...

Warnings: Some angst but fluff at the end.

A/N:This fic was requested for a skinny reader, but I did my best to make it for every female reader cuz we all go through an insecure moment and I myself get that feeling where I just wanna lie under a blanket and starve myself, possibly every single day. I just wanna say that it doesn’t matter in what shape or form anybody is, we are all unique, beautiful and smart in our own way, and we all deserve to love ourselves. If anybody wants to talk about it I’m here. I hope you guys like this one, and if you have any requests feel free to tell me. BTW GIF IS NOT MINE.

You’ve been laying on your living room couch for the past hour and a half, just randomly scrolling through social media to pass time. For the past few weeks, you decided to start working from home because of the pandemic. And you were hell-bent on convincing your boyfriend Erik to do the same, which he ultimately agreed to do.

You both decided to quarantine together since you both live in separate places and you won’t be able to see each other for a while if you're willing to lock yourselves at home.

You loved the idea, and since then, it’s been as perfect as you imagined it to be and maybe even better. Sure Erik can get a little annoying sometimes; when he’s too lazy to do his dishes, or when he keeps clinging to you during a conference call for our job - which you don’t mind - or when he uses all the hot water during his morning and night showers. But you turn a blind eye to all of those irritating habits of his, in turn of spending every evening cuddling or watching a movie or just having his warm body all over yours. Which you were supposed to do right about now hadn’t Erik gotten hungry and left you to cook something you know will probably end up burnt.

You were starting to feel kinda cold without him by our side. You already asked Erik if he needed help, but his stubborn self won’t let you anywhere near the kitchen, YOUR kitchen. But hey, as long as he cleans his mess, you’ll do as he says.

You started scrolling through Instagram in wait for “the most delicious meal you’ve ever eaten” as he said. It was when you reached one of your boyfriend’s posts and saw a comment from one of his ex-girlfriends. It was a normal comment, she wasn’t thirsting over him or commenting anything that would offend him or anything like that.

Erik already told you about her, he explained how he has known her for a long time and how they started dating only for it not to work out and decided to stay friends. You understood, of course. I mean, you’re not the type of a woman who would get jealous of her boyfriend’s friends and you don’t feel insecure about your relationship with Erik. God knows it’s the most secure and trusting relationship you’ve ever been in.

But her profile picture was so interestingly beautiful you couldn’t help but snoop a little on her Instagram account. She was so beautiful, the type of girl with an attractive hourglass figure that you only dream about. Most of her posts are of her in different poses showing off her gorgeous body. You tried your best to keep yourself from feeling down about your own body. You knew you’re not as attractive as she seems to be. She looked like a model whilst you looked like you had the most boring wardrobe ever.

You felt bad for yourself. Toxic thoughts started infiltrating your mind. You began to think about how you can put much more effort into how you look than you already do, you felt ashamed and insecure about your own body (which you should not be).

You were so lost in those unnerving ideas you didn’t notice rik approaching you until you felt a warm hand on your cheek wiping a single tear running down your face. You looked at him before you quickly locked your phone and tossed it away.

“What’s wrong princess?” He asked in the most concerned and comforting voice he could use.

You didn’t answer, you just reached your hand to wipe your eyes and calm yourself down a bit.

“Are you gonna tell me what’s upsetting my baby girl or am I gonna have to find out by myself ?”  He asked again, trying to get you to open up to him like you always do.

“It’s nothing.” You said as you looked at anything but him, an obvious tell of lying you have. Erik can read you like an open book, and you’re thankful for that, but just not at this particular moment.

“Sweetheart just tell me. You know I don’t like seeing you cry, princess.” He said as he lifted your chin up so you would look him in the eyes. Erik looked at you with the most kind and benign eyes he could muster. It’s his way of showing you that he won’t judge, and he never does.

You want to tell him, you really do, but how? How can you tell him that the reason you so childishly started weeping was over his ex-girlfriend’s pictures? You will sound so whiny or even worse, you'll look like an annoying sensitive girl who cries over the smallest and insignificant of things. But Erik is not the kind to back down when his girl feels even the tiniest bit emotional. So he pushed his way even closer to you on the couch and extended his strong arms to engulf you in a soothingly calming hug.

You can’t put into words how grateful you felt at that moment. Just clinging to him with all your might and having his cologne overtake your senses, as you felt a few kisses on your forehead every once and then. You spent the next few minutes like that until you stopped crying and decided it would be better to explain to him the reason behind your sudden feeling of uneasiness. Because, and as much as you hate to admit it, Erik is your voice of reason. If there was anyone who would wholeheartedly cheer you up and help you feel better, it would be Erik, and you love him for that. He has done it many times before, when work stressed you out, or when you just felt left out or anxious about something, he’d be there to comfort you, with a big box of your favorite chocolates. So after a few sniffles, you calmly said: “Why do you love me?”

“What do you mean ?” He furrowed his brows in confusion before he looked your way, still holding you against his chest.

“I’m not like all the girls you’ve been with before-” You started, “-I’m not as attractive as they are, or as beautifully curvy as they look. They are perfect, and trust me I’m not jealous, but if you can get girls as charming and very, very alluring as they are, then why settle for just .. me?”

Erik was beyond shocked. He thought that maybe you were just upset about work, or you’ve been probably watching some sad video on your phone. He wasn’t expecting you to ask him such a question, especially whilst you held him so tight as if he’s your only lifeline.

He did feel speechless at first, he won’t deny it. He kept thinking, from where would he start answering your question? But he knew for sure, the best answer would be the one spoken from the heart, as cliché as it sounds.

He started by pulling you away from him so he can get a good look at you, and if it wasn’t for his gentle touch you would’ve thought he wanted nothing to do with you. He then lifted your chin to get you to look at him again.

Here goes nothing.. He thought to himself before he said:

“Y/N, it’s true, you're not like those other girls, you’re you. And that is more than enough reason for me to fall in love with you and for you to fall in love with yourself. Sweetheart just because you don’t look like them or you don’t have whatever you think makes them more attractive doesn’t mean they are better than you in any way shape or form. And to be honest, I fell in love with how smart and beautiful you are, and your appearance, to me, is more than attractive and you know it.” He chuckled when he saw a small grin tugging or your lips.

“And I love you not only because of that, but also because of the little things you do for me that always make me feel better, because you always take time to be there for me to wipe away my tears whenever I need you to.” Erik stopped to take a deep breath when he saw your eyes tear up again, but this time, those are not tears of sadness, but tears of cheerfulness.

You couldn’t stop looking at him. His voice was so soothing and peaceful and not once did he hesitate when he spoke.

“And to answer your question-” He added, “I didn’t settle just for you; I actually think I hit the jackpot with you. And I live every day trying to become the best version of myself, to be there for you like you’re there for me every time. And trust me when I say I’m never letting go of you, ever.” He finished as he placed another kiss on your forehead.

“I love you.” You said.

“I love you too.” He answered before you pulled him in a soft and delicate kiss. Quick, firm and delicious. He started to pull away after he felt you smile in the kiss, then as carefully as he could, he said: “I burnt the pasta I was making ..”

[mellohi404]

My Version of the Sanders Sides Fusions:

Intrulogical:

•“Jekyll and Hyde”

•Very unstable, both of them fighting for control (it’s more Logan trying to reign Remus back)

•Faint lines for Remus’s mustache

•Green tie (loose, except when Logan fixes it), Logan’s shirt

•In the few moments where they are fused without fighting for control, they are like a mad scientist who will do anything for the sake of science

Loceit:

“The Smart-Alec”

•Stable

•Smart-alec af, blunt, also surprisingly sassy, knows A LOT, they will have debates with themselves in the mirror or just out loud while they think

•Logan’s shirt and Deceit’s cape, logan’s tie

•One glove, faint scales, no glasses

Analogical:

“The Quiet One”

•Fairly stable, except in moments of great anxiety where Virgil takes over

•Classic quiet smart kid, but, like, the meme version that could kill a man

•Very, very reserved unless talking about a subject they enjoy

•Virgil’s eye shadow behind glasses

•Virgil’s hoodie with a barely loose tie (not like Intrulogical when Remus takes over)

Royality:

“The Drama Queen”

•Stable

•EXTRAVAGANT, very loud and very proud, (but also very insecure. Both of the boy’s bad feelings together is not good.)

•Patton’s shirt, Roman’s sash around their shoulders, glasses

Demus:

“The Child”

•Fairly stable, only if both sides are willing

•Like Erik from the Phantom of the Opera. Will get their way, no matter what they have to do

•A mix of eyeshadow and scales, half and half (top half scales, bottom half eye shadow and vice versa on other side)

•Green sash around hands like gloves

•MAYBE: large line on both cheeks (like Remus’s mustache, but where Deceit’s scar? Is, but on both sides of the face)

Moduke/Intruality:

“The Lover”

•Surprisingly stable, except when Remus wants to something that Patton doesn’t like

•They have a lot of love to give, A LOT, and are not afraid to show it

•Kinda like the nice part of yandere?

•They won’t notice if other people want to be left alone or don’t want affection, when THEY want to give affection, they will and no one can stop them

•Patton’s shirt with Remus’s sash around their shoulders

•Glasses with a little bit of eyeshadow and a faint mustache

Logicality:

“The Chill Parent”

•Stable

•The perfect parent, caring but also very smart and knowledgeable

•Knows what to do in almost every situation and has the best advice

•Design 1: Patton’s shirt with tie

•Design 2: Logan’s shirt with cardigan

•Design 3: Logan’s shirt with tie tied as cardigan

•Design 4: Patton’s shirt with tie tied as cardigan

Dukexiety??:

“The Prankster”

•Fairly stable, only being unstable when Remus tries to go too far, or when Virgil doesn’t go far enough for Remus

•The ultimate prankster (Remus brings out Virgil’s...rebellious nature?...troublemaking nature? I don’t know what word I want.)

•They’ll do things just to piss people off, just because they can

•I’m not sure of this design, actually. Maybe black eyeshadow on one eye and purple on the other, mustache under the black

•Design 1: Virgil’s hoodie with Remus’s sash

•Design 2: Remus’s outfit with Virgil’s hood

Roceit:

“The Ringmaster”

•Stable

•As the name implies, Ringmaster vibes. Extravagant (but different than Royality), always putting on a show, with an air of mystery at all times. Almost always smirking.

•MUST HAVE A TOP HAT. THIS IS NOT UP FOR DEBATE.

•Very obvious scales, probably made even more obvious with makeup. Deceit’s shirt with a little red cape. Or maybe a long red cape. Either or. Red gloves.

Moceit:

“The Not Chill Parent”

•Second Most Unstable

•They both want what’s best for Thomas, but they tend to argue on what is best. They just have less anger than Remus and Logan do, so they stay fused for longer

•When they do stay fused, they’re always working to Thomas’ benefit. (Similar to Logicality, but, like, less like a smart parent and more like a wise parent? Higher wisdom than intelligence. Mel likes using dnd terms)

•This also looks like a split: scales on one side, Patton’s shirt with Deceit’s little cape over it, one of Deceit’s gloves

RemRom: (platonic because these are the canon characters)

“CREATIVITY”

•Stable

•Adamant that CREATIVITY is in all caps whenever it’s written

•Very, very prideful. He kinda sees himself as a king. He is very creative, duh, and likes to make things for the others. With Remus and Roman working together, things can be beautiful and mysterious all at the same time. (He secretly hates everything he makes. “It’s never good enough.”)

•Both red and green sashes that cross on his chest, purple eyeshadow (just on his eyelids like normal eyeshadow), almost always has a smile on his face

Anxceit:

“The Paranoid Hermit”

•Stable

•They’re very closed off and quiet. But they have a sharp tongue, quick to hit you where it hurts. Anything to be left alone. Angsty boi.

•They like conspiracy theories.

•Virgil’s hoodie with Deceit’s gloves, no skin showing on their arms at all, ever

•Deceit’s scales, but with the black eyeshadow instead of the red-ish around the snake eye

Prinxiety:

“The Drama Emo”

•Fairly Stable (the name is lame, I know, but I wasn’t sure how else to describe it)

•Roman brings out Virgil’s more Disney/dramatic side

•They like the dramatic deaths the most, and will act them out in front of everyone. It only gets more dramatic when the others aren’t around. They’ll get embarrassed if they mess something up and start to panic and think that they’ll never amount to anything and never be good enough. (a common theme with the Roman fusions, I know)

•Virgil’s eyeshadow, more on top than on the bottom so it looks more makeup-y and dramatic

•Red hoodie with a black shirt underneath

Logince:

“The Theatre Nerd”

•Stable

•They are very passionate when they’re talking about something they are interested in, making wild gestures and raising their voice

•They know a lot of facts about Disney and different musicals. A LOT. And they will say every fact whenever it comes up. They never shut up.

•A white button up shirt with a bright red tie, glasses, the sleeves are rolled up to their elbows

Moxiety:

“The Worry-Wart”

•Fairly Stable

•They just care so much and don’t want anyone getting hurt. Patton really brings out Virgil’s protective nature, and Virgil brings out some of Patton’s more negative feelings. They always have a half-smile on their face, except when they start to worry.

•They do like cookies though. Cookies are good. But they only eat one at a time, because eating a second cookie is dangerous and they don’t want to be dangerous

•A soft, black and purple sweater with a blue hoodie tied over their shoulders like Patton’s cardigan. (they play with the sleeves)

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Psycho Analysis: Erik Killmonger

(WARNING! This analysis contains SPOILERS!)

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has always been able to tell compelling stories with its heroes, but for the longest time the films lacked a key component of any great superhero story: great, compelling villains. Sure, there were enjoyable foes like Ultron and Red Skull and then there was Loki, the poster child for villainy in the early days, but I think at some point we can’t JUST have fun, we need something compelling and engaging too. To quote one of the greatest MCU villains, it should be “perfectly balanced, as all things should be.”

Thankfully, we eventually got those compelling villains. Characters like Zemo, Toomes, and Ghost showcased a level of complexity and depth not really seen in anyone outside Loki, and fun villains like Hela and the Grandmaster were better than ever, with more engaging personalities. Then we got villains who were a blend, like Ego and Mysterio, and don’t even get me started on Thanos. But there is one villain who stands out even among the greatness of these villains, a villain who is one of the few Marvel villains that I would without hesitation call one of the greatest villains of all time: Erik Killmonger.

Killmonger is a character who solidified Marvel’s turning point from weaker villains into villains worthy of high praise. And not only that, he helped to completely redeem his actor, Michael B. Jordan, in the eyes of filmgoers everywhere after a not-so-fantastic previous outing into the superhero movie genre (though starring in Creed probably also helped him out). Killmonger’s story is almost Shakesperean, with a tragic life molding him into the ruthless man he became, a man whose entire motivation is founded on hypocrisy. But it’s these facets and more that make him if not the greatest, but one of the most fascinating characters in the MCU. And yes, I mean characters period.

Motivation/Goals: Erik had a pretty miserable life growing up. His dad was killed by T’Challa’s father for allying himself with Klaue due to wanting to end Wakanda’s isolationist policies after seeing black people disenfranchised in America, and his mom was apparently in jail (and she died there). Erik’s greatest desire is to carry on his father’s work, only on a grander scale: he wants to take the throne of Wakanda for himself and forcibly end their isolationist policies, supplying vibranium tech to black people around the world and giving them the strength to fight back at their oppressors. And, you know, I can’t really fault him in theory, his plan isn’t totally evil…

...but it becomes very clear that the only person Erik really thinks about is himself. He’ll oppress and murder black people if they don’t fall in line with his plans, he doesn’t give a damn about anyone who isn’t black in general, and most tellingly of all: he decides to keep the power of Black Panther to himself, destroying it to keep any future generations from getting it. While there definitely is some truth to his goals and desires, it’s hard to deny that Killmonger is also acting out of vengeance and a lust for power. Unlike most villains who lust for power, he at least has a lot of other things going in to his motivations, which keeps him from being bland like, oh, I don’t know, Malekith.

I think it’s also worth noting that even in the film, the characters point out Erik is still operating like a CIA wetworker, dismantling and destroying governments while masking his motives under the guise of rebellious ideology. The thing here is that he’s not working for anyone who’s going to swoop in and scoop up the assets from the ruins of the places he’s destroying – he’s the master, and all he is doing is leaving behind chaos, destruction, and death for nothing. His own goals are not truly helped by a lot of his actions, especially not when he decides to eschew Wakandan traditions in the third act, which helps lead to his downfall.

Performance: Michael B. Jordan is a very talented man, which anyone would be able to tell you provided they had watched Chronicle and sat out F4ntastic. Unfortunately, the latter managed to stick in most people’s minds since it ruined the career of Chronicle’s director and basically garnered a lot of vitriol for everyone involved, so it was going to be an uphill battle for Jordan with this film.

Boy did he win the crowd here.

Jordan manages to make Killmonger everything you would want to see in a villain. He’s cunning, he’s dangerous, he’s charismatic, he’s pretty damn hot (Did you SEE him with his shirt off?!). It’s to the point where despite the incredibly embarrassing CGI cat fight at the end between him and T’Challa, Jordan manages to turn Killmonger’s death scene into a poignant and emotional moment that ends up deeply affecting T’Challa as a character and setting the stage for his character growth to the point where you can almost forget that you spent the last ten minutes watching a PS3 cutscene.

Final Fate: For a comic book movie villain, there is about a 10% chance you will make it out of any given superhero movie alive. Killmonger does not fall into that 10%; thankfully, he does get a poignant sendoff, where he gets to watch the sun set on Wakanda (both figuratively and literally, considering T’Challa’s actions in the ending) and deliver one last line clinging to his ideology to his dying breath. Maybe he was just playing a bit to mask his own egotism, but you have to give props to a man who stays steadfast and defiant even to the end. Even when offered the chance to be saved, he chooses to go out on his own terms.

Best Scene: I can hardly narrow it down to one scene, because Killmonger basically steals the show whenever he’s onscreen. But his cold-blooded murder of his own girlfriend when she became a liability to his plans, followed up by executing Klaue and delivering his corpse to Wakanda? That’s just ice cold. Most villains wish they could get the lengths they’d go to established like that.

Best Quote: After going on about the poignancy of his dying words, how could I not put them here? When T’Challa tells Killmonger Wakandan science can save his life following the Video game cuts- er, final battle between the two, Killmonger responds thusly:

“Why? So you can lock me up? Nah. Just bury me in the ocean, with my ancestors who jumped from the ships, 'cause they knew death was better than bondage.”

Final Thoughts & Score: There is just so much to unpack with Killmonger.

I think one of the aspects about Killmonger I like the most is that despite his good intentions, there is an inherent hypocrisy in all he does which, despite valid points and incredibly valid grievances, firmly cements himself as a villain. For all his talk of aiding and liberating his fellow Africans from the opression they face around the world, he feels no remorse in appropriating from them (as he does to that mask at the start of the film, ironically after calling out a museum worker for stealing it) or violently subjugating them and destroying aspects of their way of life as he does when he comes to Wakanda. And his own gripes against white people, while founded in a place of legitimacy, are also filled with hypocrisy on his part, to the point where he actively does everything he rails against the white colonizers for doing, down to even oppressing and harming other non-white racial groups so long as it furthers his desire to turn Wakanda into a power that can oppress all other nations with its technological superiority. Now, usually such rampant hypocrisy would lead to a poor character, or even an idiot – but such is not the case here. His own hypocrisy only serves to make him a richer, more well-rounded character.

Compare him to Thanos. Thanos also had a plan that was inherently flawed, hypocritical, and not rooted in rational thought – and he is widely praised as an excellent character. This is because you are not supposed to agree with a villain, valid as their points or their anger are. But at the same time, their anger and their motives gives you an insight onto who they are and how they operate, a window into how their mind works, and Killmonger’s definitely shows how he is a broken, angry man who was failed by Wakanda and failed by America and has suffered bigotry, racism, and violence all his life. And in his shoes, would you too not be angry? Even with the numerous atrocities he commits and the horrible hypocrisies he wallows in, it’s hard not to feel a bit of pity for a man who could have offered so much, only to give in to hatred.

And the thing with Killmonger is that not only is his anger valid, it ultimately does have ramifications, it ultimately does change the status quo, though maybe not in the way he envisioned. T’Challa realizes in the end that Wakanda failed Killmonger, that Wakanda has been selfish and allowed horrible things to occur to their fellow Africans because they didn’t consider them their people. And so T’Challa opens the borders, decides to share Wakanda’s gifts with the world, and reach out and help disenfranchised black people around the world so that someone like Killmonger never rises up again. What this could mean for the MCU going forward is anyone’s guess, but it definitely shakes up the status quo of Wakanda a fair bit.

I think it’s rather obvious that Killmonger earns himself a 10/10, joining the ranks of Thanos, Mysterio, and Ego at the table of champions. As far as villains go, I’d say he’s probably the deepest and most well-written, though I’d still say it’s arguable if he’s the absolute best. Still, he is certainly a fine metric by which to judge other villains, and if nothing else he will most definitely wash the bad taste of Jordan’s Johnny Storm out of your mouth forever. Killmonger really is what I would consider the gold standard that other villains need to live up to in other comic book movies, and generally speaking, we’ve been getting that recently. Let’s hope that the pace can be continued, and let’s hope whoever T’Challa is fighting in Black Panther 2 can measure up.

[knives-out20]

Reverse Psychology - Erik Lehnsherr x Male!OC

Fandom: X-Men

Pairing: Karmel Rosenstein (OC) x Erik Lehnsherr

Warnings: Gay,

Notes: N/A

“Kiss me.”

”What?”

”I said: kiss me” Karmel repeated, eyes up at the sky. He and Erik were taking a secret break from training, and were lying on some soft, grassy knoll by the X-Mansion.

”Well, now I’m not going to” Erik teased.

Karmel chuckled, propping himself onto his elbows.”The good ol’ art of reverse psychology. A wonder, isn’t it? Now, if I told you not to kiss me-“

”I could either kiss you out of the sudden urge, or respect your wishes?” Erik finished, as a question. He squinted his eyes at Karmel, raising a hand to shield the sun.

Karmel nodded. He waved his hand, vines shooting out of the ground and crossing over above them to form a roof.

Erik slowly dropped his hand.”Thanks.”

”Now you owe me a kiss” Karmel instructed, tapping his lips.”C’mon- you know I’m irresistible to you.”

Erik scoffed.”C’mere” he gestured.

Karmel eagerly scooted closer, softly cupping Erik’s cheek. All playfulness melted away from his face, leaving a expression of pure love, and adoration.”I love you, Erik.”

Erik smiled slightly, propping himself onto his elbow. He wordlessly leaned in, pressing his lips against Karmel’s.

Karmel cupped Erik’s face in his hands, eyes falling closed as he only wanted to stay in that moment, under the vines with him.

Erik cut the moment short by pulling away.”I love you too, Karmel.”

”Always?” Karmel pushed, raising his eyebrows.

”Even longer than that.”

Karmel giggled like a child as he pulled farther away, sunlight shining in his hair as it beamed through the cracks between the vines above them.”I wish we could stay here forever.”

”So do I...” Erik sighed, glancing away.”If all else fails tomorrow, who knows if we’ll ever have time like this again” he spoke, rubbing the back of his neck.

”Erik, I adore you too much to let anything bad come our way tomorrow at the blockade line. We’re gonna find Shaw, we’re gonna kill Shaw, and nothing’s taking that away from you. Not on my watch- or my bracelet, I guess. My tie? My belt?” Karmel listed meaningful pieces of clothing, Erik chuckling quietly.

”I’m touched, truly” he shook his head.”I want you by my side. Through all of it, Karmel.”

”That’s my idea of a happy ending” Karmel shifted where he lay, pulling Erik’s body closer to him.”I’ve been a misfit mutant my entire life. Being by somebody’s side- your side, nonetheless- will probably give me that stability and familiarity I’ve always wanted. Shaw, he’s a nutbag. And we’re taking his uglyass down. Kapeesh?”

Erik nodded, eyes trailing over every square inch of Karmel’s face.”What a cunning boy you are.”

”So I’ve been told” Karmel pecked Erik’s nose.”Cunning, loyal, dedicated, kinda angry, no restraint, y’know the deal. I’m a catch.”

“That you are” Erik purred, going in to quickly kiss Karmel again.”Never thought I’d be so lucky.”

Karmel felt his heart pound like a drum in his chest.”I should be the one to say that I’m lucky t’have you. Downside after downside after downside, retrieving you from the waters that night led me to lying here, with you. Give or a take a few things, I don’t think I’d rather be anywhere else but here, with you, Erik, really.”

Erik sat up, not surprised when Karmel did the same and snaked his arms around his narrow waist.”Every time? Seriously?”

”It practically begs me to do it. Pun intended, babe, you’ve got a magnetic pull on me.”

”And it makes you wrap around me like vines, huh?”

”...Touche” Karmel nodded, softly kissing Erik’s cheek.”I just- I like the constant reminder that you’re near me, and- and with me. I’ve lost too many things in the past to lose you, too, Erik. If holding you lets me know you’re here, then so be it” he explained, shrugging.”Plus, something about holding you feels...right, I guess. Like I’m meant to do it.”

“I’m not exactly opposed to it, either” Erik mumbled, turning away.

”Aww, is someone shy-“ Karmel teased. Before he knew it, his back hit the grass and Erik was on top of him, pinning him down by his wrists.

”Funny for you to say that. I vaguely remember past instances showing how I’m not the shy one, here. Or must I jog your memory?” He whispered, lips ghosting Karmel’s neck. 

Karmel gulped, cheeks heating up.”N-No, no, no need, Erik-“ he obediently answered.

Erik released Karmel’s wrists, straddling him at this point.”Good” he huffed, content with having put Karmel back in his place. Erik watched as Karmel’s vines shrunk back into the earth. He slowly stood up, offering Karmel his hand to help him up.

Karmel quickly processed what just happened, taking Erik’s hand.

Erik interlocked his hand with Karmel’s, pulling him close so that they were chest-to-chest. His other hand was flat on the small of Karmel’s back, eyes on those soft lips Karmel had the pleasure of owning.”I love you, Karmel” Erik reminded in a hushed tone, the tip of his nose touching the tip of Karmel’s.

Karmel’s cheeks were dusted with a faint blush.”I love you too” he replied.

Erik smiled, turning towards the X-Mansion and walking back over to it, hand still holding Karmel’s.”Lets go back inside; I want you to read Keats to me in the library.”

Karmel blinked slowly, glancing down at their clasped hands. Unknowingly, he smiled. A wide one, showing how he was truly content for the first time in ages. Truly content, for he’s dating the man who is ultimately, no doubt about it, the love of his life.”Sure thing, Erik.” Karmel spoke, knowing he’d do anything in the world if Erik asked him to.

”Also, don’t kiss me. Do not kiss me” Erik joked, pulling Karmel’s reverse psychology back into play.

Karmel exhaled through his nose.”Whatever you say, Erik” he complied, knowing he wouldn’t do anything Erik would ever seriously ask him not to do.